Jett's Preschool Graduation

Technically, Jett still has another year of Preschool, but today he graduated from Little Learners Preschool! The bishop's wife runs a preschool out of her home and she is just fantastic! However, it's only twice a week for two hours each day, so I have him registered for public preschool next year that runs 4 days a week, three hours each day.

Jett and his teacher Mrs. Jensen

The graduation program was super cute! The year was a pirate theme and they started out with reciting a book about pirates that go do school. Jett's line was about how pirates bring home art work every day.

Then they sang a song which I dropped the ball on because I was supposed to help him learn the lyrics. So the poor kid wasn't able to sing along with the rest of the class. To be fair, only about half of the class actually knew and sang all the words.

Then they presented all the adorable graduates.

And then showed a slideshow from all the pictures they took throughout the year. I was able to purchase a copy of the slideshow to put in Jett's yearly binder. I can't believe that this school year is already over! One more week and Cruise will be completely finished with the 1st grade! These kids are growing way too fast!

Jett and his friend Camry

8 Months!

Well, Miles is 8 months and still not crawling, which makes half of me very happy and the other half a little concerned. However, he has been practicing being on his hands and knees and rocking, and does pretty well getting to where he wants to be most of the time by either rolling, scooting, or pulling. He is especially good at going backwards, and sometimes gets frustrated when he wants to get to something in front of him and ends up scooting further away. But I think he's generally happy that he can get himself around to some extent.

Miles graduated from the baby bath to the big bath! Jett really likes bathing with his little brother and always asks if Miles can take a bath with him in the evenings.

Miles got his tongue clipped a couple weeks ago since we noticed he was just as tongue tied as Cruise was. So much so that he couldn't even get his tongue past his lips. He finally figured out after a week that he can make awesome sounds by sticking his tongue out of his mouth. So he's a professional raspberry blower now! I keep trying to get it on video but he never will do it when I'm recording.

Miles still loves to eat and really enjoys eating anything we're eating. However, he still doesn't have any teeth, so we have to limit what we allow him from our plate. But he really enjoys mashed potatoes, crackers, watermelon and bananas. He is quite the little chunk and I just love love love it! He is getting pretty heavy for me and isn't very good at sitting on my hip, so holding him gets a little tiring after awhile. When we went in to get his tongue clipped, he weighed 19 pounds, so he's getting pretty chunky that one!

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Miles says "ma ma" most often and it's kinda fun having a baby that will say Mama a lot. Cruise & Jett mostly said "Dada" at this age, so it's kind of fun to hear Mama from such a cute little baby.

Miles loves to be read to and really enjoys the touch and feel books. He also still loves to listen to music, especially when there are musical numbers at church. Miles enjoys walks around the neighborhood, and Jett loves to help with that! He will push him the entire time and I just walk ahead and make faces at Miles as we go. Miles sure loves Jett and gets a great big smile every time he sees his big brother. Jett loves to play with him and tries to get him to laugh. He is actually a really good kid to have around when I need to shower and Miles won't nap. He is a very good helper and loves to do it.

Just like with Jett, we are keeping a close eye on Miles' development. Because they have a brother with autism, they have a 7.5 greater chance of having it as well. Miles has been displaying a few sensory and repetitive behaviors that we will watch as he nears his first birthday. Studies show that that if these behaviors increase between now and his first birthday, there is a significant chance of him eventually receiving an autism diagnosis. Some may think I am paranoid, which may be the case, but I have come to learn that it is better to check it out than to ignore it. I remember Jett having a few sensory things as well (still has major sensitivities to smell), and I got him looked at a few times just to be sure. The hard thing is that we aren't in the clear until about 18-24 months. So Mama will probably have a higher level of anxiety until then.

Overall, Miles is doing extremely well and we are so blessed to have such a healthy, happy and content little boy! He truly is such a snuggly little guy and is so much fun to play with! I just wish time would slow down just a bit so I can take it all in!

Fathers & Sons Campout in Pictures

Dinner: burgers, chips, & soda...you know, health food.

"I'm a big boy!"

 Jett learned how to ride a bike without training wheels today! He's tried a few times but today, he hopped on and took off! He first asked just to try out Cruise's old red bike, and once he realized he could ride it without training wheels, he asked Dave to take them off of his blue bike. It took him a few minutes to figure out the proper way to stop, but he sure picked it up quick! Even his little friend Camry helped.

Mom's Day

I had an awesome Mother's Day. The older boys both made stuff at school for me, which is always so much fun! Cruise colored a picture and made a plate for me. The plate has a picture of the house, tree, some flowers, me, Cruise, and a teeny tiny figure next to Cruise. When I asked him who it was, he said it is his toy "Henry". 

At ABA therapy, Cruise's tutor, Jodi, had him fill out a cute card for me and gave me a German chocolate cupcake (my favorite)! Just in case you can't read it, it says:

To My Mom.

When my mom was little she...gave her mom a gift.

My mom looks pretty when she...wears makeup.

My mom is really good at...picking up toys.

My mom is happiest when...I act silly.

My mom gets mad when...she sends me to my room.

My favorite thing to do with my mom is...play with her.

I love you mom because...she loves me!

Love,

Cruise

Jett's teachers had him do a cute handprint page with a poem. 

Sometimes you get discouraged

Because I am so small

And always leave my fingerprints

on furniture and walls.

But everyday I'm growing-

I'll be grown some day

And all those tiny handprints

Will surely fade away.

So here's a little handprint

Just so you can recall

Exactly how my fingers looked

When I was very small.

He also filled out something about his mom:

My Mom is Special

By Jett

Let me tell you about my mom.

She is 4 years old.

My mom is special because..."he's really special."

My mom helps me...clean up.

My mom makes the best...mashed potatoes.

My mom taught me how to...clean up my room.

I help my mom...clean up her room.

Sunday morning, Dave and the boys presented me with a cute wreath they made. Dave had seen one like it while out knocking, so he made one for me and one for his mom as well.

That evening we went to the Ybarras for dinner. Miles got to hang out with his cousin Elizabeth.

Dave had been working on some shutters for the house for me. When we moved in two years ago, one of the shutters was missing and the size was custom, so we couldn't go pick one up from the hardware store. So we ended up just taking them all off. After two years, I finally have shutters again! And they are so cute and match the front door! Dave got some wood from the neighbors who pulled down their fence to put in a vinyl one. Besides the paint, they were virtually free! Dave did such a great job and it's so nice to have custom shutters. He had to rent a ladder from Lowes to put them up today, so I sat on the grass with Jett and Miles and we watched Dave juggle a shutter and drill, while trying not to fall. It was quite entertaining. I am one blessed lady!